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Stress in organizations is a widespread phenomenon with far-reaching practical and economic consequences. A report published by the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (1999) in the United States summarized findings from various surveys on organizational stress and found that between 26 and 40% of all surveyed workers experienced their work as very stressful. Similarly, 28% of the workers in the European Union reported that their work causes stress (Levi & Lunde-Jensen, 1996). In Japan, the percentage is even higher than either of these (Harnois & Gabriel, 2000).

Experiencing organizational stress is related to health problems and their associated costs. A study based on more than 46,000 US employees showed that health care costs were 46% higher for workers who experienced high levels of stress (Goetzel et al., 1998). Moreover, organizational stress is assumed to be related to increased absenteeism. For example, estimates from the US and England suggest that about the half of all lost days within organizations are related to workplace stress (Cooper, Liukkonen, & Cartwright, 1996;